The Xbox One will kill used games and control second-hand sales, and that’s great news (Really!)

Microsoft stepped in a load of dog shit when news of fees to play used games and account-based permissions began to hit the press, and the lack of a cohesive message in this area has hurt the public’s perception of the upcoming Xbox One. The idea of the used game, at least as Penny Arcade understand it, may be coming to a close.

The new bureaucracy installed to rework how used games will "work", IS going to cost mind and man power.

Not sure how it will all work, but if the PS4 used game policy stays the same and MS tries something new: one will face an uphill battle laying down new pipelines, while the other has all the power already on and working.

Will the average college student working in local gamestops even bother listening to the MS rep coming in, telling him how this tech should be used? Or will that worker just concentrate on his already rough job, tell the kid trying to sell an Xbox One, "sorry, we don't accept those"? Or will brick and mortar stores (already under tight budgets) want to open up their pocket books, spend more money to have pros run that used game system? We'll see.

I think it would be much wiser if Sony simply made transactions easier for retailers and consumers, so I hope it happens. Going through that extra wait just to get your game re-authenticated seems a bit weird to me. Not every consumer would like that, so these are the kind of "buyer's mentality" microsoft should've considered. Then again, there are a other issues with xboxone we need to worry about as well.

Agree. Once the market is dead both sony and MS will be able to go the route of Steam. They can offer deals etc...and they will make more money. The ps3 once allowed 5 ppl to play one game. Maybe reinstating something like that will appease gamers because it could b even cheaper than buying used.

This terrible opinion piece was already mangled by NeoGAF. Someone should have struck this down before it got approved.

The author of said article is an extremely asinine corporate bottom shoe licking toolshed.

"Based on this information, it sounds like you’ll be able to “sell” your used games, but no one will buy able to buy them. Microsoft becomes the entity that controls the entirety of the transaction, and no lower-priced tier of 'used games' is ever created in this scenario."

This is only good for suits. Devs get their share, Pubs take the rest. Suits = Pubs.

"The author of said article is an extremely asinine corporate bottom shoe licking toolshed."

Agreed. This "article" is just terrible.

"This is good news for a few reasons."

No it's not. At all. For anyone but Microsoft and greedy publishers, this is bad news.

"The first is that piracy will likely be reduced."

The token argument for all anti-consumer practices involving software. It was never a valid reason, and it never will be.

"The next thing is that the used-game market all but disappears. GameStop may not be able to aggressively hawk used games for $5 less than the new price to customers under these new controls, which is great if you're a developer or publisher. Once that secondary market is removed you can suddenly profit from every copy of your game sold, and as profit margins rise it's possible we'll see prices drop. Some stodgy publishers will likely stay with the $60 model, but they're dead companies walking already. The smart companies will see this opportunity to play with pricing and see what works and what doesn't."

This whole thing is B.S. I'm still looking for someone to answer the question "Why should developers/publishers get extra profit off of one copy for NOT doing ANYTHING extra to deserve it?" And don't get it twisted, "you can suddenly profit from every copy of your game sold" <- This already happens. Unless sold online, developers don't sell their games directly to consumers and instead sell to stores like Gamestop, who are the ones that pay for the copies in full.

"Without the used market sucking up all those sales and all that consumer money, it's very possible we'll see Steam-style sales on older or bundled games on the Xbox One."

That's a false connection. The DD games on Live and PS3 already prove that publishers aren't interested too much in ever lowering the prices of their games, even if they are years old. What's more likely to happen is that publishers will see that there is not other option for consumers to get the game cheaper, so they'll have said consumers "by the balls" so to speak.

"It's not a sure thing, but killing used games is going to free up a ton of money for companies to try new ideas in terms of sales and pricing."

*facepalm* more failed logic that doesn't take into consideration the possibility of people just not buying the games at all.

"The current economics of game development and sales are unsustainable."

Wrong, the current business models are unsustainable.

And finally, stop using Steam as an example. Steam itself is a huge form of DRM and is anti-consumer in its own ways. It's only prevalent because it suckered PC gamers for too long to the point where it's too late to do anything about it.

Funny how people don't care about the viability of the industry to make money. We've seen many game developers go under and we've also heard many comments from game developers who would like to abolish used games in its current form.

We have to think differently now. It is not like before. Everything is connected now and those servers cost money. I also don't want people stuck in the past limiting what's possible for the future. I want games to be quick to get started and play. I want games ready to go and not have to wait for it to load, wait for it to patch. I want to be able to have access to all of my games from anywhere without the need for the hardware to be carried around. I can go to my buddies house and sign-in and play my games.

Games like Watchdogs and Destiny will show what's possible in games going forward and why being connected has its benefits. If you don't want to be part of the new generation then go pull your SNES out of the attic.

The reason why most of these game companies are going under is because of poor money management.

How many companies tried to make a mansion out of toothpicks by making unnecessary triple AAA games (Tomb Raider) or tried to do unnecessary reboots (Zipper Interactive), paid way too much for licensing (THQ) or had an advertisement budgets which are almost triple the game's production cost (EA).......

And yet...the UK last year had to rule on ownership rights of games brought on Steam. Isn't it possible that a lot of people are starting to see the downsides of DD?

It may not bother you, but it does bother others. Just because you feel nothing for it, doesn't mean it doesn't effect you. One day you may find that all this indifference comes back to bite you in the ass...kinda like it is doing for many right now since we have to deal with it in this manner.

its not your property and hasnt been since the start of gaming. buying the game doesnt mean you own it anyway it just means you have brought the right to play it and thats it if you read the terms and agreements you accepted when you put the disc on your console you are breaking them by then selling it.

love the disagrees when all i was doing was pointing out a fact. end of day this has been in gaming for a long time in which you was breaking the T&A's by selling your copy its just there wasn't a way to enforce it untill recent years.

Are you insane? That's one of the most crazy/sad thing I've ever heard on this site (that says alot).

Anyway, hypothetically if someone comes and steals your game collection, you have the option of calling the police to attempt to recover your property and if they succeed in recovering your property the person who took them will be charged w/ theft. If you want you even not press charges personally and give them your game collection if you choose to.

I just read the book to my copy of Final Fantasy 13-2 and the only selling that it seems to mention that is wrong is the selling of unauthorized reproductions (Illegal copies). It says nothing about selling the original copy.

I don't even know why people keep comparing this to steam. Steam gives you deals and sells you games for low prices, sometimes you can even get certain things for free. I doubt you will see the low prices you see on steam on the One. Microsoft wants to get more money out of you, digital copies on Live almost always cost more than physical ones.